The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment has commenced a consultation with relevant stakeholders on its proposed Companies (Corporate Governance, Enforcement and Regulatory Provisions) Bill, which will enhance the Companies Act 2014.
These proposals include amending the audit exemption regime for small companies to remove automatic loss of audit exemption and put in place a two-step, graduated procedure to deal with late filing.
When the Companies Act 2014 was proposed, the accountancy bodies advised that the loss of audit exemption was an extreme penalty and should be removed. Better late than never.